1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to the field of digital video recording, and more particularly to personal video recorder user interfaces.
2. Description of the Related Art
Modern day personal video recorders allow users to view a broadcast multimedia presentation on a delayed schedule, even while the broadcast still continues. After recording of the broadcasted multimedia presentation onto a storage medium is commenced, a user can begin playback of the recorded portion of the multimedia presentation. If a user chooses, he can pause playback of the multimedia presentation while the remainder of the multimedia presentation is still being recorded from the broadcast. The user then can commence playback of the multimedia presentation from where it was paused.
Some personal video recorders incorporate trick mode playback enabling a user to fast forward and rewind a recorded multimedia presentation. These systems are not convenient for accessing a particular portion of the presentation, however, because a user often must scan through a substantial amount of recording until a particular portion of the multimedia presentation is found. This is especially time consuming when a user wishes to skip from the end of a multimedia presentation back to the beginning, or from the beginning to the end.
Some personal video recorders provide an onscreen display that tracks a present location in the presentation as trick modes are performed on the presentation. The onscreen display is typically limited to a cursor displayed within a track. The position of the cursor within the track moves to reflect a present location within the presentation. However, the movement of the cursor is not adequate to precisely determine the present location within the presentation, nor to provide program information helpful to navigating through multiple presentations.
Other personal video recorders allow a user to bookmark a multimedia presentation where a user last stopped the presentation. Stopping the multimedia presentation whenever a user wishes to bookmark a particular sequence can also be inconvenient and, needless to say, irritating. Hence, bookmarking has limited use for finding a specific portion of a multimedia presentation. Further, bookmarks are typically erased after re-play of a multimedia presentation is commenced. Hence a user only can use the bookmark once to jump to a bookmarked portion of the multimedia presentation. After one use, a user typically must revert to rewinding and fast forwarding through the multimedia presentation in order to review the particular sequence again.